Especially judging by whats happening in the gaming industry right now. Mass layoffs everywhere from once leading lights in the industry, now acquired by big business and having to succumb to broad budget cuts.
Well there is certainly more "indie" AI slop nowadays. The latest example is Next Fest on Steam right now, almost 8k demos and, well, just have a look, or read any media outlet who is reporting on it - it's an absolute travesty.
Yup, I let streamers help me figure out what games are worth playing.
Lately, I'm just watching About Oliver, he does blind / no-wiki / no-backseat gaming. If you are a Minecraft fan, you'll experience something no one else in the community can do. He's currently doing a Create series, but watch the first season first, it's really special.
I'm confused, it looks like he plays 90% Minecraft and KSP?
I agree in principle though - I usually search on YT for reviews and/or gameplay before I buy anything these days, since gameplay trailers are like Hollywood movie trailers: they either give too many spoilers and/or they trick you into buying something that isn't what I want.
Check out the playlists, he's done a number of games. I have the Outer Wilds on in the background. (very cool game play)
Oliver is not a streamer I get recommendations from, he gets recommendations from his followers. I watch him more for the blind playthroughs of my more favorite games.
Of course considering who just bought EA (PIF, a Saudi fund + Kushner and some other asshats) and it all makes sense. But I'm still shocked and really sad.
At the same time, more people are getting news from independent sources on social media and self publishing platforms. I can’t remember the last time I watched cable news.
I'm not so sure, they are still beholden to click / subscription optimization, which has their content and headlines tuned for their base. Think outfits like Laura Loomer or Meidas Touch.
I generally look for those whose primary means of income is not their reporting or podcast.
Today everything you’re exposed to has to be approved for release by Google, Meta, and all of the backbone providers along the way - or you’ll be shouting into the void.
TV is dying and streaming is stagnant so I don’t think it’s particularly worrisome that big companies are buying up the dinosaurs before they go extinct.
One problem I see with this is discoverability. Most people viewing these "independent" sources are seeing them on some platform like TikTok/YouTube/FB/Twitter where algorithms have a lot to say who sees what when.
Another problem with these "independents" is they are fed their material via farms that have been proven to be run by Russian operatives which makes the quotes around independents necessary.
That is a problem of not having unlimited time. The internet (at least as it broadly exists now) solved the problem of a few people being able to prevent access to information, and in such a manner that distribution is almost instant.
Lack of unlimited time means people will need some way to choose which information to learn and which to not learn, which may well be to choose whatever is curated by Meta/Alphabet/etc, but that is a choice made by the user, not by leaders.
> that is a choice made by the user, not by leaders
Within the constraints of the algorithms and controls those leaders put into their platforms. Most of those algorithms were designed to maximize ad profits, which is tied to time on platform, with the algorithms converging on anxiety and similar negative emotions. Big data can be dangerous
Information has never been cheaper to spread, and facts never more expensive to verify.
News outlets used to be held to journalistic standards; these days they can self-regulate. Finding reputable news sources is getting harder and harder.
This is not necessarily better, I'm still unsure myself. I would like it to be true, but misinformation and foreign influence campaigns are much more effective these days.
The most significant change is that we no longer have a shared reality. Before our current situation, at least we got the same news. Today we get different hyperbole.
the greatest wealth concentration and inequity in american history, blatant corruption and nepotism
an out of control, bipartisan oligarchy
The majority of HN has been on the winning side of this equation, benefiting greatly from the rise of the computer, internet, and now Ai. This is not most people, we forget about them, we tell them it's their own fault when it is not. The game is not fair, it's rigged for most humans.
What about OP's comment rings communistic, or even political to you? Or is it the link between information control and wealth consolidation that you find controversial?
Michael Sandel is not a communist, he thinks capitalism and markets are the better way to organize an economy. He's trying to reframe the conversation around meritocracy, the inequality this leads to, and distributive vs contributive justice.
Distributive is more the communist / far-left take from the rich and give to the poor. Contributive is about the dignity of work. People are happiest when they are part of a community, have work which can support a family and contribute to the greater good, and above all receive social recognition for their contributions. (like the essential workers during COVID we rarely speak of these days)
While we've always had technological advancement and automation, the computer changed things. We stopped producing new types of tasks for many humans. Almost all new tasks are cognitive. We told people "if you want to get ahead in the new economy, go to college." Well, most people do not have college degrees, and within that there is an implicit insult that if they are suffering, it is their fault for not doing what we told them. The people who rigged the game also obviate these people and make it harder for the average person to have a decent life.
I recommend his conversations with Daron Acemoglu. Both have perspectives worth hearing and considering.
They are also a media company. They run the Roku Channel streaming service which produces original content and also has a 5% share of all us tv viewing tv viewing.
Paramount+ has a 2.5% share and Disney has a 4.7% share for comparison.
Ok. But I really wouldn't trust numbers coming from the same company that produces them. A better gauge would be Nielsen. Roku doesn't even show in the top 10.
Personally I've had Roku from the beginning and never once saw or watched the Roku Channel. But I did look it up now. Looks like all "D" rated films and really old media. They produce nothing and licence and syndicate everything.
I did not know this. Can you expand on it? When I was on Roku channel it looked like it was all free. I didn't watch long enough to notice if it had advertising embeded in it. If it is ad supported your telling me after distribution costs their advertising network brings in 1b+?
It is a strong signal that open solutions should be available to swap into when the enshittification comes.
I have been unable to find an open equivilent of Roku, Apple TV, and Nvidia's Shield, but would be interested in sponsoring an open version via https://bounties.fulu.org/ that could be manufactured through CrowdSupply. An open design and code to run on the hardware avoids future commercial capture. One can then own their media system end to end, from storage, streaming (Jellyfin ecosystem), and hardware on a display.
Especially judging by whats happening in the gaming industry right now. Mass layoffs everywhere from once leading lights in the industry, now acquired by big business and having to succumb to broad budget cuts.
I hope for more indie, in games and software - more lifestyle & small businesses - where creativity and uniqueness can flourish
Abandon all hope, yee who enter.
Well there is certainly more "indie" AI slop nowadays. The latest example is Next Fest on Steam right now, almost 8k demos and, well, just have a look, or read any media outlet who is reporting on it - it's an absolute travesty.
Yup, I let streamers help me figure out what games are worth playing.
Lately, I'm just watching About Oliver, he does blind / no-wiki / no-backseat gaming. If you are a Minecraft fan, you'll experience something no one else in the community can do. He's currently doing a Create series, but watch the first season first, it's really special.
https://www.youtube.com/@AboutOliver
Also working on an NES harness instead of gaming myself after a too long stint with X4 foundations :x
I'm confused, it looks like he plays 90% Minecraft and KSP?
I agree in principle though - I usually search on YT for reviews and/or gameplay before I buy anything these days, since gameplay trailers are like Hollywood movie trailers: they either give too many spoilers and/or they trick you into buying something that isn't what I want.
Check out the playlists, he's done a number of games. I have the Outer Wilds on in the background. (very cool game play)
Oliver is not a streamer I get recommendations from, he gets recommendations from his followers. I watch him more for the blind playthroughs of my more favorite games.
I've used some genre top lists YT videos lately
I still can't believe EA just shut down Bioware.
Of course considering who just bought EA (PIF, a Saudi fund + Kushner and some other asshats) and it all makes sense. But I'm still shocked and really sad.
Bullfrog, Origin, Mythic, Westwood, Maxis and others.
As for Bioware - Mass Effect Andromeda, Anthem, Dragon Age: The Veilguard.
EA's prior behaviour combined with Bioware's recent performance would be enough for this to make sense.
This also isn't unusual with what's happening across the AAA gaming industry; take a look at the layoffs at Microsoft.
Bioware is a cadaver. All the original people are gone, they aren’t even a shadow of their former self.
There's no way the future is good, near term or long term. Not unless you're a part of that specific class.
At the same time, more people are getting news from independent sources on social media and self publishing platforms. I can’t remember the last time I watched cable news.
"independent" may be a misnomer these days, much of it is catering to the audience and political alignment, with people living in different realities
the new incentives do not seem to have served us well, and perhaps worth noting that the same oligarchy controls the algorithms of the new platforms
Independent in the sense that they're not part of the corporate media.
I'm not so sure, they are still beholden to click / subscription optimization, which has their content and headlines tuned for their base. Think outfits like Laura Loomer or Meidas Touch.
I generally look for those whose primary means of income is not their reporting or podcast.
for the future? this has already been happening for years and is a major reason we're in the predicament we're in
What predicament are we in?
Consolidated and Sanitized media controlled by a few brands, that coordinate propaganda messaging.
In my almost 4 decades of life, today is the least amount of control over information that leaders have had, whether political or business.
When I was younger, the only way information, and especially video/audio was spread is via a select few outlets.
Today, anyone can upload anything to a variety of servers and spread the information within seconds.
That was more true in the 2000s than it is today.
Today everything you’re exposed to has to be approved for release by Google, Meta, and all of the backbone providers along the way - or you’ll be shouting into the void.
TV is dying and streaming is stagnant so I don’t think it’s particularly worrisome that big companies are buying up the dinosaurs before they go extinct.
One problem I see with this is discoverability. Most people viewing these "independent" sources are seeing them on some platform like TikTok/YouTube/FB/Twitter where algorithms have a lot to say who sees what when.
Another problem with these "independents" is they are fed their material via farms that have been proven to be run by Russian operatives which makes the quotes around independents necessary.
That is a problem of not having unlimited time. The internet (at least as it broadly exists now) solved the problem of a few people being able to prevent access to information, and in such a manner that distribution is almost instant.
Lack of unlimited time means people will need some way to choose which information to learn and which to not learn, which may well be to choose whatever is curated by Meta/Alphabet/etc, but that is a choice made by the user, not by leaders.
> that is a choice made by the user, not by leaders
Within the constraints of the algorithms and controls those leaders put into their platforms. Most of those algorithms were designed to maximize ad profits, which is tied to time on platform, with the algorithms converging on anxiety and similar negative emotions. Big data can be dangerous
Information has never been cheaper to spread, and facts never more expensive to verify.
News outlets used to be held to journalistic standards; these days they can self-regulate. Finding reputable news sources is getting harder and harder.
at the same time, the nature of "news" content has moved away from reporting what happened to speculating what might happen
> Today, anyone can upload anything
This is not necessarily better, I'm still unsure myself. I would like it to be true, but misinformation and foreign influence campaigns are much more effective these days.
The most significant change is that we no longer have a shared reality. Before our current situation, at least we got the same news. Today we get different hyperbole.
what is a predicament?
the greatest wealth concentration and inequity in american history, blatant corruption and nepotism
an out of control, bipartisan oligarchy
The majority of HN has been on the winning side of this equation, benefiting greatly from the rise of the computer, internet, and now Ai. This is not most people, we forget about them, we tell them it's their own fault when it is not. The game is not fair, it's rigged for most humans.
Michael Sandel explains it better than I can yet
Funny how within 4 comments we've went from mundane tech news to communist political philosophers
What about OP's comment rings communistic, or even political to you? Or is it the link between information control and wealth consolidation that you find controversial?
I have clearly never claimed that OP is a communist, you're misinterpreting
He did, however, recommend an author at the end of his comment, and that's whom I was referring to when I said "communist political philosopher"
Michael Sandel is not a communist, he thinks capitalism and markets are the better way to organize an economy. He's trying to reframe the conversation around meritocracy, the inequality this leads to, and distributive vs contributive justice.
Distributive is more the communist / far-left take from the rich and give to the poor. Contributive is about the dignity of work. People are happiest when they are part of a community, have work which can support a family and contribute to the greater good, and above all receive social recognition for their contributions. (like the essential workers during COVID we rarely speak of these days)
While we've always had technological advancement and automation, the computer changed things. We stopped producing new types of tasks for many humans. Almost all new tasks are cognitive. We told people "if you want to get ahead in the new economy, go to college." Well, most people do not have college degrees, and within that there is an implicit insult that if they are suffering, it is their fault for not doing what we told them. The people who rigged the game also obviate these people and make it harder for the average person to have a decent life.
I recommend his conversations with Daron Acemoglu. Both have perspectives worth hearing and considering.
Roku isn't a media company. They make hardware and license software.
They are also a media company. They run the Roku Channel streaming service which produces original content and also has a 5% share of all us tv viewing tv viewing.
Paramount+ has a 2.5% share and Disney has a 4.7% share for comparison.
https://advertising.roku.com/learn/resources/nielsen-gauge-4...
Ok. But I really wouldn't trust numbers coming from the same company that produces them. A better gauge would be Nielsen. Roku doesn't even show in the top 10.
https://www.nielsen.com/data-center/top-ten/
Personally I've had Roku from the beginning and never once saw or watched the Roku Channel. But I did look it up now. Looks like all "D" rated films and really old media. They produce nothing and licence and syndicate everything.
The numbers I posted are the Nielsen numbers. Also Roku channel does produce original content as well.
They are an ad and media distribution company.
The hardware looses them $80m+ while the add and media distribution brings them in $1b+.
The hardware is a side hustle run at a loss to acquire users for the main business.
I did not know this. Can you expand on it? When I was on Roku channel it looked like it was all free. I didn't watch long enough to notice if it had advertising embeded in it. If it is ad supported your telling me after distribution costs their advertising network brings in 1b+?
It is a strong signal that open solutions should be available to swap into when the enshittification comes.
I have been unable to find an open equivilent of Roku, Apple TV, and Nvidia's Shield, but would be interested in sponsoring an open version via https://bounties.fulu.org/ that could be manufactured through CrowdSupply. An open design and code to run on the hardware avoids future commercial capture. One can then own their media system end to end, from storage, streaming (Jellyfin ecosystem), and hardware on a display.
I've heard this is a recent clout chaser trend, more with smart TVs directly than a stand along accessory.
Not sure if that translates into real demand for it, most consumers are going to consumer.